What have we learned today? On the Deadcast we learned that Ramrod brought of fresh batch of Owsley in,and everyone ( used to the old batch) took way more than they should have.The result is this wonderful,magical show.Would you have it any other way?

Oh he knew, and it tore him up knowin’ it was.

The pig was on fire. Did he know the end is near and simply wanted to leave with a bang? Whatever it was, his rappin is what I remember most after a listen.

I'm Parisian, and this concert was my first Grateful Dead concert. I was then 18, I had never heard anything like this "Dark Star" and this music has traumatized me for all my life. I could listen a thousand times this "Good Lovin" and this "Dark Star" with as much pleasure and love.

Perhaps overshadowed by the 1st Oly and the following show at Bickershaw. Not a tour top five, but it's E72, where there is a ridiculous amount of good material and easily overlooked shows. Pigpen lovers get four in the First Set alone. Songs from this show have been on five different official releases.
First Set. Like the previous night (or like most of E72) things roar out t'gate, with a good Greatest Story and an early (slowww) Deal. The Mr. Charlie is stellar and it's because of Bobby. Elsewhere speaking fake French, here he calls for Beat it on Down the Line-7½ and they do it! The only "low" points of the set are Brown Eyed & He's Gone, but only because they're thin and relatively undeveloped here, and Casey Jones, which is ostensibly a funky, groovy version - but slows to where it's lanquid and flat.The rest is well above average, especially You Win Again. One of five on E72 tour - note Pig's organ as well. Bobby's all over the rhythm figures for Big Railroad.
Second Set. It's a jam song to start, with Good Lovin'. There are some great sections but also some vamping - it's not 4/8 or 4/16. Next Time You See Me may get overlooked, and though there are a couple better ones on the tour, this is aces. Ramble On Rose may be the best one to date and Jack Straw is the first great one with the newer arrangement. The Dark Star is much-discussed, and even occasionally revered. Why - because it's long? It's so long it was released on both sides of the Dark Star LP (chosen over a dozen better, and also lengthy 72s); cute, that. The two longest ones have another song sandwiched - this one does not. But the truth is, it's full of repetition and noodling. This is the Dead your unenlightened friends complain about. Not the best one of the tour, though E72 isn't the peak era of Dark Stars anyway. That said, there are - of course - good sections, particularly after Drums. There ought to be @40min! Conversely, this is one of the tour's best versions of Sugar Magnolia - or would be, as this is a studio overdubbed version (that's all that exist, as vox were recorded over the top of the existing stems). Mexicali was generally nailed on E72 but this is beyond the pale. There's a couple average songs until a whopping Goin' Down the Road. The second solo is insane and fires both Keith and Pigpen. Unfortunately, the Not Fade Away turns into a Bobby vs. Donna shriekfest. Bobby wins. One More Saturday Night is usually listed as the encore but they didn't leave the stage.
1st Set:   B-
2nd Set: B+
Overall = 4 Stars
Highlights:
Mr. Charlie - great throughout the tour but it's Bobby that shines here
You Win Again - this and 5/24 are the winners; note Pigpen on organ
Big Railroad Blues - Bobby's playing is great
Next Time You See Me - up there with 4/24 & 5/23
Ramble On Rose - best to date
Jack Straw - 1st great one of final arrangement
Sugar Magnolia - def a winner with Jer's wah, but only studio vox exist; box version more accurate than original
Mexicali Blues - Jer really hits on a cool solo this night; best of tour
Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad - flying by the time the second solo zaps inter-dimensions
SOURCES: This miller.77294 or official box version (latter has a bit more Keith and less Jer in the mix). Dark Star is on its own album. The overdubbed Sugar Magnolia was on the original Europe '72. A version sans solo was the Sugar Magnolia 7" single (b/w Mr. Charlie from 5/23). Next Time You See Me & Deal are on Europe '72 Volume 2.

'It Hurts Me Too'
best version.
great pigpen show
jerry and pig very in sync

Europe 72 was how many of us (in the 1980's) 1st got turned on to the DEAD playing live on an LP.
This would set the bar for shows we would see in the 1980's. It was an impossible bar. Sort of like the line in Crazy Fingers "Never could reach it, just slipped away"
The music on this tour is as close to perfect as music gets to perfect in an imperfect world.
My feeling is the x-factor of these shows is having audiences that were seeing the Grateful Dead afresh without all the clutter that accumulates over time with anything that anyone does regularly. And conversely I believe it was good for the band to get away from the expectations and yes demands of their growing fan base.
The other factor is this moment in time finds the old guard ie-PIGPEN meeting the new guard -Donna and Keith. And there is something to be said for things we do in the prime of our lives!
Also not sure how anyone could hear Pigpen sing 'TWO SOULS' and not be deeply and profoundly moved. That just happens to be where I am at in the recording. But I can find in every tune such soul and flowers in full bloom beauty.
"Oh, One more time. I just want to fly"
Just had to add this is the best GOOD LOVIN with PIGPEN. He even gets some WANG DANG DOODLE all night long in there. seriously this is masterful. His mojo is off the Richter scale.

This is one of their finest shows. Dark Star speaks for itself. Greatest Story, Deal, Mr. Charlie, It Hurts Me Too, Jack Straw, Sugar Magnolia and SMBH are perfect.
Chinatown Shuffle reminds me of Charlie Patton.

The ice cream story is true. New Haven, Clark's Dairy and the cast of outsiders including Brockett, who did the deed, Kelley, Douskey, Ness and maybe Epstein. Later, Kelley moved to California, the greatest move possible. Brockett joined the Norwegian Navy, Kelley is gone, Douskey was last heard from in the southwest, and Ness, now gone.
All their motorcycles quiet.

some of you might find this interesting if you didnt already know it: Europe '72's packaging was designed by Alton Kelly and Stanley Mouse. The front cover shows a large Truckin' boot crossing the Atlantic, while the back cover depicts the corresponding Truckin' fool smashing an ice cream cone against his forehead. (Some of the ice cream flying through the air spells out the word "LIVE".) The ice cream to the forehead happened while Kelley was in New Haven, Connecticut. Kelley, Bill Brockett, Franz Douskey and Bill Ness used to hang out together. One night, after buying ice cream at Clark's Dairy, on Whitney Avenue, Bill Brockett took his cone and smashed it on his forehead. The image stuck and Kelley used the image on the Live album. I'm not sure where this story came from but I wouldn't be surprised if it was true. Kelley did live in Connecticut for a while. Heres a pic of the place where it all went down. Funny how some little Dairy in New Haven can somehow be connected to shows they played thousands of miles away.
http://home.flash.net/~ral1/starbucks/bigimages/DSCN7854.jpg />http://opendoornumberfour.blogspot.com/2010/05/so-long-clarks-dairy.html

Another stellar performance from this tour.This is THE perfect Sugar Mag. Sing me back home is gorgeous and I wish that they had played this song more often (and not 'retired' it). The Stranger is another song that didn't get a lot of attention but this version is beautiful and soulful as only Pigepen could deliver it. The Dark Star is beauty; A collage of landscapes in different moods. I personally prefer the DS from 4/14. Listen to them both and judge for yourself, I can't imagine being disappointed with either of them!
As always, Thanks to Charlie Miller for managing to perfect perfection.

Yup, thanks Charlie!!!

Excellent both in performance and sound quality. Thanx Charlie.

Another Tour de force, this time with an exceptional performance of Dark Star. While the first set is not quite as spectacular as that of the night before, Playin' in the Band is gorgeous and Mr. Charlie could be a best-ever performance of the song. The second set however, is another magical moment among many on this tour.
Pig's 23+ minute Good Lovin' set opener is a fantastic performance. But the high point of this show is of course the moody/exploratory two-part Dark Star split by a drum break, and what is possibly the best Sugar Magnolia of 1972 (on Europe '72).
This fine Dark Star soars from the opening notes. It is brilliant and jazzy, sustaining momentum through the entire pre-verse segment. Jerry's playing is particularly inspired. At the 6:00 mark, Billy initiates a snappy jazz beat that drives the ensemble through an extended Coltranesque jam, with Weir slashing in some interesting fills before the verse. The post verse space segment is rather dark and atonal, with some eerie rumblings from Phil before the two and a half minute drum break. Post drums, Phil picks up where he had left off. Things remain spacey and quiet untill 7:15 when Jerry initiates another movement and things get real jazzy again. This one moves quickly for a bit, Jerry blazing before things slow down into a gorgeous UJB type theme jam before the second verse conclusion to one of the jazziest performances of Dark Star on the tour.
The following peformance of Sugar Magnolia, used on the Europe '72 is the Pièce de résistance. Sing Me Back Home, a lovely Uncle John's Band, and a start up GDTRFB round out an incedible set.
Both of these Parisian treasures deserve to be boxed and released in their entirety. (98 pts)

I need to update my WILL and add Charlie Miller to it. Many, many, many years passed until the great invention of the Internet appeared, which made this possible...as well as dedicated folks like Charlie. I've never met the man, but i feel i owe him something. His copies always take me to that different place (without adding any "special ingredients" to the mix. Those days are long behind me, but the Dead keep continuing to be a nice, therapudic part of my life. Even my 6 year old boy KNOWS when Jerry is playing on the stereo, and he cocks a nice grin and listens to him play. :)
Dooly

I'm not usually enrapt by Good Lovin' but this one is worth really listening because it quickly goes to places I don't recall having heard before. In fact, the bulk of it is a series of jam segments (etudes) that they have obviouly been fooling around with. There even Jerry doing bridge strumming a la Fleetwood Mac's Black Magic Woman. WOW

anyone got a copy of the bonus disc that came with rockin the rhein? its called academy of music 72. i won it on ebay for 38.00 but got ripped off. the guys ebay name is captain-video. i will buy a copy or get you a copy of any show you want. i also have most other bonus discs. just email me at rosemary425s@aol.com

of course its a 5 star show, and of course its essential - nugs dot net has it waiting, although i really appreciated the real player directions below - that worked too - soo good, you need two copies!

Notes to self:
Remember that the 2nd Dark Star has that sweet 'out of body' jam I love so much ... 1st set is all the stuff the way I expect them to sound... Recording and playmanship like a Dick's pick...
Don't ever forget 2nd set ... Pigpen kicks me in the balls... listen to him when I need to get my lazy ass moving....or when I think all the women of the world look at me like I am just a walking piece-o'-crap
SingMeBackHome...use this version when I get around to learning how to pick the song...

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~<->/<->\<->~
Thrity seven years ago today in "GRATEFUL DEAD History":
~~~~~~~~~~~! PIGPEN & KEITH in Paris !~~~~~~~~~~~
It's a Pigpen and Keith show in Europe!
There aren't enough shows with Pigpen and Keith.
These two incredible performers add so much fun, syncopation and rhythmical dimension to the GRATEFUL DEAD you have to get up and dance.
Pigpen and Keith made a special "Magic" only seen on earth for a brief moment in time, but it was captured on tape and is now available on the Internet Archive for all of us to hear, hopefully forever. It sounds too good to be true, but it's not.
I "Highly Recommend" adding this show to your 1972 GRATEFUL DEAD collection. Five stars for the mix, recording, performance & transfer.
Pigpen lays down his organ chops and adds that special "West Coast" sound.
A real treat for us Pigpen fans. A great Pigpen show, and the boys aint' bad either.
I was always a BIG fan of Pigpen's singing & playing.
Relaxed, calm, and assertive the GRATEFUL DEAD perform their show like seasoned professionals to a Parisian audience in spring.
Ah, the smell of Paris in the spring...inhale, cough, choke, cough, hack. Good stuff man...
Not a New York City crowd, but the boys manange to generate some excitement and deliver an incredibly memorable show.
I'd say if a "live show" could be a MASTERPIECE, this one would be it, up until the frogs turned off the electricty during "Next Time You See Me." What the hell was that shit? Excuse my French...
And then there is the French "Dark Star"....this is where you will find what you are looking for.
Gone are the familiar riffs and licks from the 1969 Dark Star...and to replace those street signs in the music are a whole new set of sounds that do the same thing only differently.
Hardly any crowd noise, just a clean sound off the board, mixed to perfection.
One of the best performances of "Sing Me Back Home" I've ever heard. It's very beautiful and angelic.
Get this show while you can, get it while it's free, get it now or you will be sorry.
It's a Charlie Miller transfer. I recommed you click on Charlie's name and collect all his GRATEFUL DEAD shows.
The IA recommends users of Windows XP view this web-page with RealPlayer. RealPlayer is a free media player you can download at www.realplayer.com.
For easy streaming or downloading use RealPlayer. Click the VBR M3U link to open the songs in the Playlist. If your Playlist is not open, open it by clicking the Playlist icon at the lower right hand corner of RealPlayer. Once the songs are in the Playlist, double click the song to play it, then click the record button at the lower left hand corner of Realplayer to record it. When the red line reaches the other end click the stop button to download the song. Your song is in the RealPlayer Downloads folder. Repeat these steps for each song.
Eat, Drink, be Merry and Listen to the GRATEFUL DEAD.
Thanks to IA, the GRATEFUL DEAD and Charlie Miller.
I will always scream MORE!
Can you blame me when the music is this good?
Thanks for the LOVE from Paris, France

awesome show! wish i was there

so yes, while listening to this Dark Star, think about the individual age of this band at the time of this recording: Jerry 29, Bob 24, Phil 32, Pig Pen 26, Keith 23, Donna 24, Bill 25.......!!! A joy to listen to.

This will make you row your galleon. Guaranteed.
Excellent recording, spirited playing, Pigpen!
An absolute masterpiece.

In no particular order: 2-13-70, 2-26-73, 10-14-68, 5-23-72, 2-15-73, 2-27-69 [insert other faves here] ... and this one.
As an initial matter, labelling this as "DS->Drums->DS" would ordinarily be extremely lame except that this drum solo is one of Billy's best. It's brilliance, however, is difficult to appreciate outside of its proper context which is the entire 40 minute long beautifully shiny beast. That is because Billy is hot from beginning to end. Just listen to his drumming during the last verse!
Eventually I'll get around to annotating the Dark Star minute by minute because there at least six distinct (and instantly recognizable) movements. The band start out very tight and in a sublime mood then veer into a dreamlike space of impossible depth. Billy's drum solo occurs smack in the middle of this dream but it seems as if rather than leaving the stage for a smoke the rest of the band has simply dissolved or liquified into nothing before our ears.
When they finally awake, they suddenly snap together and play as tightly or tighter than they ever have before or since, as if awakening they simultaneously understand what they had been aiming for all along.
What I've always found most awesome is that they tease the energy-sucking "downward jam" in this portion for only a few bars. Jerry is plainly uninterested in building a cheesy hut of mundane, major chords on top of the pensive mountain of minor grooves and accidentals the band has accumulated to this point.
And so he lifts the band higher.

We'll never know what the original vocals from this concert's Sugar Mag sounded like, but who cares? This is one of the greatest concerts they played in one of their greatest years. On my speakers I can't tell if this version is better than the others already on this site but I'm enjoying it nonetheless. As clean as this is though it'd be hard for me to leave my old analog board tapes of this show behind completely. They are up there with my finest. And sound great in my car.
Bravissimo!